The state of spelling

[Purple]

/gripe on

What is wrong with people? Modern trends point toward the increase of social interaction via computers. People spend many hours typing to their friends and acquaintances, so why the hell can people not spell.

My personal button is the confused use of 'weather' and 'whether' and 'there' and 'their'. When I read posts or tech’ specs / explanations, I simply cannot take the advice given seriously. A misspelling makes me think 'yeah, that was written by a 12 year old'.

I even read 'their' in place of 'there' in a newspaper the other day. You write for a living, at least use a blinking spell checker, and editors do your job.

/gripe off

The solution is this, ‘leet speak’ has become quite socially unacceptable, and to such a degree that people do not use it anymore unless they are a true idiot or are taking the mick. The use of this deformity of language has been eroded by constant snipes at the users. I think if people can be embarrassed into using proper spelling, eventually the correct spelling will be learned and we won't see the gradual decline of the language through digital social networking.

I frequently just get annoyed at those who misspell and say nothing; I propose that all those who do get annoyed at this should point it out to posters (in a nice way) and correct the mistake.

[rox0r]

Poor spelling and grammar I can forgive, some people just aren't as eloquent with their words as others.

On the other hand, 'text speak' can just rot in hell and die. I simply cannot abide the use of things like 'ppl', 'ur', 'm8' and so and so forth. Text speak was originally born of the limitations around how much you could fit into one text message before you had to use another and bear the cost (when they were still fairly expensive and free texts were just a pipedream) but for it to persist into written language is just criminally lazy. In general if I see a forum post containing such 'abbreviations' I'll skim past it mostly safe in the knowledge that the poster was simply a cretin with barely anything worth saying anyway.

[Dareos]

not everyone is dyslexic, some people are just stupid

[Vroomparrot]

I often agonise* over my spelling and grammar when writing anything, but I know I still get it wrong. In fact I have a sneaky suspicion that there is something wrong with the previous sentance.

My personal pet hate is the use of 'your' instead of you're.

*actually just checked the spelling of this, I was right but it can also be spelt with a z. This is not the first time I have checked the correct spelling for a word in a forum post.

[Vroomparrot]

not everyone is dyslexic, some people are just stupid

No full stop!

[Steve B]

sentence*
I also dont mind a few spelling mistakes here and there.
I also dont mind a few Acronyms, like iirc for if i recall correctly, or zomg for oh my goodness
what i cant stand however, is people who deliberately spell things wrongly, that includes so-called "txt-language"
f u r so lazy 2 nt wnt 2 spll wrds rite, pls dnt tok at al kthxbye

[Saracen]

/gripe on

What is wrong with people? Modern trends point toward the increase of social interaction via computers. People spend many hours typing to their friends and acquaintances, so why the hell can people not spell.

My personal button is the confused use of 'weather' and 'whether' and 'there' and 'their'. When I read posts or tech’ specs / explanations, I simply cannot take the advice given seriously. A misspelling makes me think 'yeah, that was written by a 12 year old'.

I even read 'their' in place of 'there' in a newspaper the other day. You write for a living, at least use a blinking spell checker, and editors do your job.

/gripe off

The solution is this, ‘leet speak’ has become quite socially unacceptable, and to such a degree that people do not use it anymore unless they are a true idiot or are taking the mick. The use of this deformity of language has been eroded by constant snipes at the users. I think if people can be embarrassed into using proper spelling, eventually the correct spelling will be learned and we won't see the gradual decline of the language through digital social networking.

I frequently just get annoyed at those who misspell and say nothing; I propose that all those who do get annoyed at this should point it out to posters (in a nice way) and correct the mistake.

In a context like a forum, I don't agree at all.

TXT is, IMHO, going to far, but the overall objective in a forum post is to communicate. If I see "their" or "there" when it should be "they're", it doesn't really affect my ability to discern the poster's meaning. Sure, it grates, but I still know what they mean.

Personally, I do know which version to use in which circumstances, and I know when to use "its" and "it's", and so forth, and if I spot such mistakes in my posts, I'll correct them because I want to, not because of anyone else's expectations. And despite knowing the correct usage, I'll still make that type of mistake, from time to time, and that's from someone with a good education, with English as a first language, that doesn't suffer from any form of learning disability or dyslexia, and that has spent the last couple of decades writing for a living.

So if I can still goof, what about those that do suffer from dyslexia, or for whom English isn't a first language, or who don't have a natural aptitude for language or a good education? Does the fact that they get a few words or spelling wrong mean that what they are actually trying to say has any less meaning? Not in my opinion, it doesn't.


You'll find spelling mistakes, grammatical mistakes and occasionally the wrong "there" in my posts. If I reread it and spot it, I correct it. But my participation on forums is a hobby, and I don't apply the same level of care in forum posts as I do in written business communications or professional writing commissions. I'm on a forum as a hobby, to relax, to have fun .... not to try to maintain 100% control over typing errors or the occasional misused word.

Personally, and this is my view not forum policy, I will have a lot less respect for someone that goes around trying to correct everyone else's spelling, typing or grammatical mistakes than I will for other posters, because to my way of thinking, that absolutely is NOT what a forum community is about.


For me, a large part of the beauty of a forum is to be able to communicate with a large variety of people, from a large variety of backgrounds, from a huge list of countries, of different ages and educations. You can get to appreciate the perspective of a large number of people from different geographical, racial and educational backgrounds in an internet forum in a way that isn't possible almost any other way. And I don't want to lose that because a few people either don't know the correct form or spelling of a word or two, or can't be bothered to check all their posts carefully.

Any forum that started doing that on a regular basis would be one that lost my participation in pretty short order.


And I'll give one more reason why I don't agree. If you're going to criticise others in their use of English, isn't it implicit that you're extremely careful in your own posts? People in glass houses, after all, proverbially shouldn't throw stones. So when you ask a question, shouldn't it end in a question mark, not a full stop?

....... People spend many hours typing to their friends and acquaintances, so why the hell can people not spell.

[TeePee]

not everyone is dyslexic, some people are just stupid

'Dyslexic' is a word derived from Greek. The Latin word for the same thing is 'Illiterate'.

Both mean the same thing and require the same technique to correct. Some people simply take longer to learn to read and write, while others are simply too lazy to try.

I have no problem with people who can communicate their ideas through the odd spelling mistake, but the people who make no effort deserve no respect.

[Steve B]

I have no problem with people who can communicate their ideas through the odd spelling mistake, but the people who make no effort deserve no respect.

The people who deliberately spell incorrectly are also worthy of no respect

[Vroomparrot]

sentence*

Gahhh! Hoist by my own petard.

I could go back and change the spelling, but I think I ought to leave it.

[Purple]

So when you ask a question, shouldn't it end in a question mark, not a full stop?

Damn, i checked that post really carefully!

I do agree with you from a General Discussion point of view, a few misspellings are fine. I also agree that 'IIRC' and such are a true necessity of web language because they have become phrases in them self IMHO.

But, for technical discussions and proper debates, where clarity and conciseness are paramount, then it should be important to use the right spelling or risk losing credibility.

I think in those two circumstances, people do read their posts, and are just plain misspelling words, which i think should be pointed out (in a nice way).

[Dareos]

All posters need to use one of these before posting!

[Clunk]

It is inevitable, someone complains about spelling and they spell something wrong always makes me chortle

ime off now 2 cheque me grammah and punkchewashun

[MilkMan]

Maybe you are all forgetting that not everyone is English in these forums.
I know I’m not, English is not my fist language.

So by making a few silly typing mistakes, makes me stupid / dyslexic.

Hmmm, I really don’t think that it’s fair to say that.

Besides, we not writing an English exam – are we!

[Steve B]

i certainly wasn't implying that anyone who uses English as a secondary language is stupid/dyslexic. I'm saying that people who deliberately spell words wrongly should be condemned to lines

[Purple]

Before this spirals in to a flame and people start to hate me.

I am not suggesting that at all, my gripe (which means 'unreasonable complaint') is not directed at anybody and was meant to be light hearted. However is based on the truth that misspelling among English speakers has become prevalent and generally ignored. Particularly as I pointed out in my original post in newspapers, where once a week I come across some sort of error.